Orion posted a really great developer diary that details the upcoming changes for the Lone Lands, which I am really excited about. Overall, I’ve been happy with the changes to Archet, Bree-land, Ered Luin and the corresponding Epic Quests. Things flow more smoothly and the aspects of those areas that felt a little murky have really come into their own. The revamps of those areas have certainly improved things, but the updates to the Lone Lands sound significantly more interesting to me.
Also discussed is infamous Garth Agarwen instance. Personally, I wandered into that area once and never ventured in again. I always feel a little lost in it and the strength of the enemies didn’t feel worth the pay off. Garth Agarwen was the first instance Turbine designed from the game and it could certainly benefit from what Turbine has learned since then. An entire page is dedicated to the changes in Garth Agarwen and I recommend reading it. The area is being split up into clusters and the entire thing just sounds like it will flow better and be more fun. I always felt like I was just “dropped” into that area, surrounded by a ridiculous amount of mobs who seemed to have no real goal beyond standing in my way. It sounds like things will be significantly improved there.
The article presents some really great ideas for the Lone Lands, but they’re also great ideas for the game in general. I hope to see some of this capitalized upon throughout the rest of the game. I really suggest reading the full developer diary, but a few things caught my attention beyond the adjustments to the Epic Story, the ability to solo more of the Epic Quest line (or continue on as a group as in the past, if you wish) and the addition of the Eglain faction:
Challenges
With Mines of Moria™ we introduced the concept of hard mode, a more difficult version of the instance that provided players with greater rewards. As we refined the system it became apparent that Hard Mode was not only a silly name, but also a rather obtuse system that did nothing to assist players in understanding what the objectives were. In order to adjust this, we have created Challenges.Challenges are daily quests that are bestowed to all players who have not already completed them for that day, and meet all other quest criteria – prerequisites or level restrictions. These quests will appear in the quest tracker and display the success and failure cases for the players. Upon opening the quest journal, players can read the background on the quest and see further instructions on the challenge before them[Rewards for Challenges may vary slightly from instance to instance but, typically, they will be the following: coin, faction, and a barter token of some type. In the case of Garth Agarwen, the barter token is used to purchase rewards from the Eglain at the entrance to the Garth Agarwen area.
I’ve not played too many Hard Mode variations on quests, but I’ll be honest: I think they’re weird. I didn’t feel that they fit the spirit of the game, but I also felt they were confusing. I like the ability to choose a harder variation of a quest; Dungeons and Dragons Online handled this well, whereas I’m not so sure that LotRO did. In any event, challenges make a lot more sense and the name is much more fitting.
Optional Objectives
In addition to the new Challenge system, we have added another piece of tech to allow for Optional Objectives to appear for players inside any given instance space. Like Challenges, these appear in the standard instances and target monsters or other targets within the instance. Also like Challenges, these quests can be completed daily and reward players with coin and/or faction for their completion. There can be multiple optional objectives per instance. The first of these quests, appearing in the Garth Agarwen Cluster, provide up to four different objectives within the instance. Optional Objectives may be different for each player..
Optional Objectives are meant to follow the main path of the instance with minimal extra effort so that groups can work together to achieve each other’s goals. Further, since the optional objectives can each be completed once daily, players will have reasons for entering the same instance multiple times per day.
I absolutely adore this idea. This concept is one of my favorite things about untold amounts of single player RPGs. Dungeons and Dragons Online has capitalized on this idea as well, offering additional minor objectives in addition to the main goals of each individual instance. It spices things up and makes the world feel a bit more alive. I’m extremely happy about this one. 
There’s more to it, so be sure to read it all. Have I said that enough yet?
Next on Orion and Turbine’s revamp list? The North Downs. Sweet! 
Remembering my days as a beta tester, I actually think Great Barrow was the first instance created.
Personally, on the changes, I think they need to spend their time on things that will affect more people: aka less time on raiding gated behind tiers, less time on low-level changes, and less time spent on PvP changes.
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Ah, I’m not sure what was first myself. I’m just going by what Orion said in the article.
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